Whitbread, the parent company of Premier Inn, has unveiled plans to cut 3,800 jobs across the UK, including the closure of a long-standing pub in Wenvoe.
On Friday, Whitbread said it would close several Brewers Fayre and Beefeater restaurants to save money in light of cost pressures from increased business rates and national insurance contributions.
One of the restaurants set to close is the Walston Castle, located on Port Road in Wenvoe.
Other Beefeater restaurants impacted include the Coach and Horses in Cardiff, The Longbow in Llantrisant, The Coldra in Newport and the Waterfront in Swansea.
Impacted Brewer's Fayres include Swansea Vale, Aberdare, Llanelli, Ebbw Vale and Abergavenny.
Whitbread said the closures are part of a new five-year strategy aimed at achieving £250m in cost savings and transforming its restaurant offering.
Whilst the plans have been announced, Whitbread confirmed that the proposed reduction to its 30,000-strong workforce remains subject to employee consultation, adding that it anticipates retaining a considerable proportion of those affected.
Premier Inn recently began converting some of its underperforming Beefeater and Brewers Fayre restaurants into hotel rooms and intends to continue the policy across the remaining 197 restaurants.
The move will involve Whitbread selling and leasing back £1.5bn of its freehold properties. Unusually for the hotel sector, the company owns a significant proportion of its hotels, although it said it now intended to “recycle” £1.5bn to “fund future growth” and would increasingly hope to lease its hotels.
Dominic Paul, Whitbread’s chief executive, said: “We plan to convert all our remaining branded restaurants to an integrated food and beverage offer that is preferred by our hotel guests and will unlock the addition of more highly profitable extension rooms. Our continued efforts to drive our commercial plan and efficiencies will extend our market-leading position and allow us to take share from our competitors, many of which are struggling to grow.”
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